I saw him out there. He's huge! I was hoping to see him in action; maybe taking out a pigeon, but no luck.

squawky hawky February 24th, 2009 | 4:32pm

Its me you're lookin at. Ya see I once lived in that big ole beautiful tree on Rio Rd. The county cut it down last week so I'm still reelin from the shock. I don't know who to trust or where to hang out anymore.

Reality Check February 24th, 2009 | 7:04pm

Squawky, whatever you do, stay away from Downtown! It's all about the density and 9-story towers now. Fuhgeddabout those famous panoramic views of the mountains Charlottesville is known for. Pretty soon, those views will be only for the wealthy living in the penthouses, not for the jerks on the street.

Get your tail-feathers over to Afton. That hasn't been ruined yet...

Rafaelo February 25th, 2009 | 10:22am

Reality check: the ghost-hotel is actually ten stories from the Water Street side, but who's counting? Mr. Tolbert says that this fudging--including the additional rooftop penthouse which does not count as a "story"--is perfectly legal. I say: change the law so developers can build by right only to the average height of surrounding buildings. I say also, train the hawk to carry off developers and dismember them.

Reality Check February 25th, 2009 | 12:35pm

Rafaelo, fantastic idea, and I think the hawks would enjoy it too! Developers are usually well-fed and juicy, though they might have grown a bit leaner in this economy.

In retrospect though, after the Planning Commission is done turning downtown into a mini-Manhattan, the hawks would probably enjoy all the updrafts etc that buildings like that provide. Makes for fun flying. The people huddled on the ground in the shadows though...? Maybe not so much.

Buffalo Girl February 25th, 2009 | 3:06pm

love these comments---and love the Hook for giving the creative minds of Charlottesville a place to vent and maybe even a place for our elected officials to learn something